A Queen’s Hills man is getting ready for the operation he hopes will free him of crippling head pains every time he coughs, sneezes or even laughs.

Chiari malformation - what is it?

A chiari malformation is when the lower parts of the brain are pushed downwards, below the entrance to the skull and towards the spinal cord. This can cause pressure at the base of the brain, and block the flow of cerebrospinal fluid to and from the brain.

That fluid normally surrounds and protects the brain and spine, carries nutrients and removes waste.

During Danny’s operation, surgeons will shave back the bone pressuring his brain to create more space for the blood to flow.

More serious forms of the chiari malformation are linked to the spinal condition spina bifida.

Danny Tickle will undergo surgery at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge on Monday for a brain condition called chiari malformation.

But before that, the 22-year-old and his colleagues at Namco Funscape in Bowthorpe want to raise money for others with a sponsored head shave.

Mr Tickle was diagnosed three-and-a-half years ago and describes the pains as “20 times worse than a migraine”.

“I get chronic head pains if I so much as sneeze, cough, laugh or exercise. It’s pretty awful on a day-to-day basis. I’m quite an active person so I’ve had to give up a lot in my life to deal with it,” he said.

Despite admitting to being nervous about the operation, he said it could be “a new beginning” for him.

“I can go back to doing what I want to do, play football when I want. I can restart my life from scratch,” he said.

Mr Tickle will go under the clippers today to raise more than £400 for the children’s cancer charity Clic Sargent, the arcade’s nominated charity. The proceeds from the shave, nicknamed Tickle’s Mop Chop, will go towards a 2015 target of £3,000.

General manager Amy Thain said: “I’m extremely proud of what Danny’s doing and all the staff who are fundraising this year for Clic Sargent.”

Donate online at www.bmycharity.com/ticklesmopchop

Are you doing something special for charity? Email mark.shields@archant.co.uk